This Mother’s Day weekend we celebrate moms everywhere – and of every kind. Even after witnessing more than 20 killer whale births at our parks, we're always amazed at the care killer whale calves receive from their mothers. Here are some fast facts on killer whales and why we think they are such fantastic moms.

Big baby!

Killer whale calves start out life bigger than most human adults! From our experience, SeaWorld estimates newborns are about 8.5 ft. (2.6 m) long and weigh approximately 350 lb. (160 kg).

After months of rehabilitation, SeaWorld Orlando’s Animal Rescue Team returned a total of 16 sea turtles to their ocean home this week. Of these sea turtles, 15 were rescued Dec. 14, 2012, off the coast of Cape Cod, Mass., as part of a massive rescue of animals suffering from cold stress.

On February 25, Discovery Cove welcomed its newest addition to the park – an Atlantic bottlenose dolphin born at 10:05 p.m. Mom (Kendall) and calf are both doing great and are under the watchful eye of the animal training team. Take a peek at this video to hear an update from Gina McDaniel, zoological supervisor, who is part of the team caring for this bundle of joy.

Animals at SeaWorld Orlando, Discovery Cove and Aquatica Florida don't celebrate the Oscars like people do, but if they did here are a few nominees we'd be sure to see...

On August 7, 2012, the Brevard County Sheriff's office responded to a report of a possible dead body in the Indian River Lagoon. However, when officers arrived on the scene, they discovered a loggerhead sea turtle, instead. Due to his unique discovery, he earned the name “Lazarus: The Presumed Dead Loggerhead."

Just about any time of the year is Valentine's Day at SeaWorld, Discovery Cove, Aquatica and Busch Gardens — with more than 20,000 births across all of our parks, we have some of the biggest and best breeding programs around. Check out some of the fascinating strategies our animals may use when they're looking for love:

Earlier this week on January 8, a team of marine animal rescue experts - from National Marine Fisheries Services, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, Hubbs-SeaWorld Research Institute and our very own SeaWorld Orlando – worked together to free a dolphin that had been tangled in fishing line in the Banana River, located near Cape Canaveral, Fla.

A 3.5 foot-long, 35-pound dolphin was born at Discovery Cove on Friday, November 30 at 10:22 a.m.

This birth is notable because it marks the first time a dolphin at Discovery Cove has successfully given birth to a calf conceived through the use of “sperm-sexing” research, which involves separating sperm carrying a female-producing X chromosome from sperm carrying a male-producing Y chromosome.

Yesterday morning, Sept. 27, SeaWorld Orlando’s Animal Rescue Team, along with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) and Sea to Shore, rescued a wayward manatee nicknamed Lil Joe who was lost in the Little Econlockhatchee River in Seminole County, Fla.

Thursday morning (August 2, 2012), SeaWorld Orlando’s Animal Rescue team traveled to Merritt Island, Fla. to return a rescued manatee and her two-week-old calf to their natural environment.